Lab-grown diamonds have surged in popularity over recent years and are a cost-effective alternative to mined diamonds. However, many people are still sceptical of lab-grown diamonds and think they may be purchasing something ‘fake’ or ‘artificial’. This article will explain how lab diamonds are grown and the similarities and differences to mined diamonds.
What are lab-grown diamonds?
A lab-grown diamond is a genuine diamond. While mined diamonds originate under the Earth’s crust over millions of years, lab diamonds are grown in a laboratory in controlled environments.
Using methods such as High-Pressure High Temperature (HPHT) and Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD), diamonds that are visually identical to mined diamonds are created.
Lab-grown diamonds aren’t just visually identical to mined diamonds. They are the same physically and chemically.
Lab diamonds exhibit the same sparkle, show the same spectrum of colour, and come in the same shapes and sizes.
They are just as long-lasting and durable as mined diamonds and read as a ten on the Mohs scale – which measures the hardness of a mineral against others.
For added peace of mind, lab-grown diamonds are available as certified by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and the International Gemological Institute (IGI).
Are Lab-Grown diamonds considered fake by experts?
Lab-grown diamonds have been globally recognised as authentic diamonds by gemologists for decades.
In fact, in 2018, the Federal Trade Commission stated, “A diamond is a diamond no matter whether it is grown in a lab or comes out of the ground”.
The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) has been grading lab diamonds since 2007. And since 2019, they stopped referring to them as ‘synthetic’. The GIA Lab Diamond Report includes the standard GIA colour, clarity and cut grading scales for reference purposes.
What are the differences?
- Price
Lab-grown diamonds have a significant difference in price from their mined counterparts. You can typically expect to pay around 30% less for a lab diamond than a mined one with identical specifications. Since mined diamonds formed over millions of years deep within the Earth, they need costly resources to extract them.
Lab diamonds, however, are born through science and technology, thus proving a more cost-effective option. - Creation process
As stated above, while mined diamonds take millions of years to form beneath the Earth’s crust, lab-grown diamonds are created over several months in a laboratory.
High-quality diamond specifications are rare for a mined diamond and, therefore, much more expensive. It is much easier to procure lab diamonds with ideal characteristics in a more cost and time-effective way.
While lab diamonds are made in a shorter period, remember they give the exact same beauty, sparkle and radiance as mined diamonds.
They are also an ethical choice, as they don’t damage the Earth or exploit workers and communities to obtain.
Pros of lab diamonds.
If you want a diamond that is guaranteed to last a lifetime, without breaking the bank, then a lab diamond is well worth considering.
It is also the best way of getting a larger diamond size without compromising on any of the 4 C’s.
Since it is visually, structurally and chemically identical to a mined diamond, you can own one and truthfully say it’s real.
They are also an ethical and humanitarian choice which doesn’t require harming the Earth or impoverished communities.